Abyss of Vacuity
by nickersoncrazy
Summary: Shattered by a break-up, Nancy loses almost all belief in love, until she finds someone who paves path for her to start new. Oneshot.


Hey there :) This is a story I've been wanting to write for soooooo long (1 month, 1week, to be exact) and I tell you, it's mental torture when you have a story in mind but just no time to pen it down...lol :)

Also, if you're a Nancy/Frank fan, you might want to hit the back button...sorry. Just saying.

Nancy's POV.

* * *

"Nancy, my feelings for you have…changed."

It's all in plain English, yet so hard to understand. All I can do for a moment is simply stare. I can't talk, even though I desperately want to; I can't even gasp. My pain-seized heart that was ready to fulminate seemed to have stopped dead in my chest.

In the deadly silence of the moment, I looked at him. I looked at the man I always thought would be my only one. I looked at the man who I'd always believed would love me unremittingly. I forced myself to believe that everything was just an awful misunderstanding. I assured myself that everything would be all right.

I looked at Frank Hardy, my fiancé, again. And my heart shattered like glass once again. He didn't look like anything could change his mind.

I had met him while on a case. Working as a dilettante detective caused me to meet a lot of people. But when I had met Frank, I knew that I had never felt as strongly for anybody else. I had always thought that he felt the same.

With heavy, shaky breaths, my trembling fingers reached out to touch his hand and feeling him flinch immediately caused hurt to pierce right through the core of my heart.

"No," I choked, feeling a horrid lump form in my throat. "Frank…please."

For the next minute, all I could hear is he breathing heavily. He still hadn't even looked at me.

"Frank," I prodded.

"I – I don't know, Nancy," he began. "Things have changed. The more I think of us getting married, the less sure I am of it. It's just about everything that has been happening recently."

I hated admitting it, but Frank was right. Our relationship hadn't been at its peak in recent times. He kept putting off dates. And whenever we did occasionally go out on one, it most often, used to end in somewhat of an affray due to some reason or the other.

Things _had_ changed.

"I didn't think it would be fair to you if I kept postponing doing this," he said quietly. "I thought it would be less painfully if it happened sooner than later."

"But – "

Frank reached for my hand and gave it a slight squeeze. I hated how he did it with such finality. "I'm sorry, Nancy. There's someone better out there for you and me. It's just a matter of time before we find them."

With that, he stood up and then walked away.

And then the enormity of what had happened caught up to me. The tears began to roll down, one by one, silently.

Frank had broken up with me.

My fiancé had broken up with me.

I couldn't bear the excruciating pain that he was inflicting upon me. I didn't want to believe that someone I was months off to marrying had just said that things were over. I put my head in my hands and sobbed for the next few minutes. Then, devastated, I dragged myself home.

I had the consequences of an unmitigated break-up to live with.

--

My heart aches every time I look at my bare ring-finger.

It's been weeks since I had last heard from Frank, and I miss him terribly. I kept waiting by the telephone, hoping against hope that he'd call, but that never did happen. I still look at his picture; I still have all the oddments of our relationship. I can't seem to bear to part with them.

I was waiting.

I was waiting for someone to come around and soothe my broken heart.

--

I felt so guilty.

It was ridiculous, but somehow, I felt like I was betraying Frank. I felt as if I were unfaithful.

I met someone who made my heart beat double time.

He was cute, funny, charming, and smart. He was perfect.

But not for me.

Not for someone who was still hurting so much from a break-up.

I felt bad for admitting it, but sometimes, I feel like I'm attracted to him. But instinct told me that it was just a one-time thing and would be over before I knew it. I was still in love with Frank.

I believed so, at least.

I felt guilty thinking of how happy I was when I heard that this new guy was going to work at the same police headquarters as me. Now he'd be so close to me.

_His eyes._

I loved his eyes. They were so warm and wonderful. I lost myself in them every single time I saw him. They seemed to lure me.

There was nothing more to it than that, though.

I loved Frank.

I _wanted_ to love Frank.

I was a helpless, ramshackle mess.

I knew that I didn't want to fall for this new guy.

Only because I couldn't risk being so badly hurt again.

--

I wanted to touch his hand. I just wanted to know how it would feel.

I had tried so hard to keep him out of my head – out of my _dreams_, even – but I hadn't yet succeeded. He was on my mind all the time.

Impelled by some unknown force, I walked up to him at work and j started a normal conversation. _Normal_, despite the fact I thought my heart was going to pop out of my chest. I was barely listening to him talk. I was just looking at him…his every chiseled feature.

My hand slowly moved over his.

And the feeling was wonderful beyond expression. His hands were so warm…so secure…

I was touching a hand that did not belong to Frank.

Unexpectedly, his fingers tightened around me. Frank used to do that too.

He moved close to me…we were so close to each other…

Our undeviating stares at each other intensified as he moved further closer to me. I could feel his warm breath fan my face. I loved that feeling.

My lips parted.

We were going to kiss.

I couldn't do that…I loved Frank…didn't I?

"_There's someone better out there for you…"_ His words rang in my head.

I leaned in to the kiss. His warm, sweet lips gently brushed mine first and then pressed tenderly. I wrapped my arms around his neck, wishing to prolong the moment forever.

It hit me all of a sudden.

I was falling in love.

And I wasn't sure if I wanted to.

--

"I'm in love with you." Four weeks, ten dates later, he finally said it.

Frank had said those same words, and I had fallen for it. And had ended up getting so hurt. But Frank was just a part of the past.

My new boyfriend looked at me intently, evidently waiting for a reply. But I didn't know how to. I couldn't put my feelings at risk; I didn't want him to leave me broken-hearted the way Frank had. I didn't want to re-live that.

"I – I can't," I said, my eyes welling up.

For a moment, he looks hurt. "What do you mean?" he asked softly.

"How can I trust that you won't hurt me?" My heart aches at the look of the pain on his face.

He put his hand on my arm and looked deep into my eyes. "We've barely known each other for a month, but I swear, Nan, you're the best thing that's ever happened to me. I love you so much. Probably more than you'll ever know. I'd never do anything that would hurt you."

I looked into his eyes and saw it. I saw something that I hadn't seen in Frank's eyes.

I saw love.

His thumb traced my cheekbone all the way to my jaw, then chin, where his hand cupped; when I shed my every inhibition, and we kissed so hard that I was almost numb when we finally parted.

Then I realized something I should have known. I loved Frank, but as nothing more than just a great friend. We enjoyed each other's company, but there was nothing more to it than that. But with _this_ boy…it was different…there was so much passion…

"I love you," I said.

We kissed again.

My love for him knew no bounds when he gently took my hand in his.

The reason I believe in love again.

I could trust him; he'd never hurt me.

I could whole-heartedly throw myself into the haven of his arms.

My only; my everything.

I loved him so much.

He filled in my abyss of vacuity.

Someone called Ned Nickerson.

* * *

Yeah, like you didn't know I was talking about Ned all along, lol :D Anyway, hope you enjoyed it and comments are always welcome, you know:)

nickersoncrazy


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